11 profil of new baccalauréat holders entering the main branches of higher education

In 2015, general baccalauréat holders represented 79.7% of new baccalauréat holders enrolled in . This rate dropped to 78.1% when dual CPGE enrolments were excluded. 43% of new entrants to short STS courses were technological baccalauréat holders and 35% were vocational baccalauréat holders.

Most of the new baccalauréat holders entering university in 2015 took the general baccalauréat (nearly eight out of ten). They accounted for 93.9% of new entrants in CPGE, 66.8% preparing for DUT and 21.5% in STS. (table 11.01).

Technological baccalauréat holders made up the greatest number of new entrants into STS (43.3%), but their proportion has dropped by thirteen points in ten years. Vocational baccalauréat holders account for 35.2% of new baccalauréat holders in initial education excluding apprenticeships. This proportion has almost doubled in ten years: in 2005, it accounted for a mere 20%.

In 'other courses' (see methodology), a large proportion of these were general baccalauréat holders (82.6% of entrants).

At university, nine out of ten new baccalauréat holders came from general education. The profile of these new baccalauréat holders varies according to the course. Scientific baccalauréat holders were mostly concentrated in production specialities at IUT, in 'Sciences, STAPS' and healthcare courses, where they make up virtually all of those enrolled. The other general baccalauréat holders go into 'Arts and Humanities', 'Law, Economics, Economic and Social Administration' and in IUT service specialities (chart 11.02).

Of the new baccalauréat holders enrolled in IUT, 31.1% held a technological baccalauréat (table 11.01), mainly in management, sciences and technology (STMG) in the 'services' specialities and Industry and sustainable development science and technology (STI2D) for the 'production' specialities. Slightly less than 15,000 vocational baccalauréat holders enrolled in a university, mainly in 'Arts and Humanities' and in 'Law, Economics and Economic and Social Administration'. They represented 9% and 7.4% respectively of enrolments in these two major sectors (chart 11.02).

Access to higher education was still very closely linked with social background. Among the 2015 baccalauréat holders who enrolled in higher education straightaway, young people from the most advantaged social categories were over-represented. Thus, 28% had parents who were senior managers, teachers or self-employed professionals, compared with 23% for all bacclauréat holders combined. In 2015, as in 2005, there were nearly twice as many children of managers as children of manual workers among new baccalauréat holders in the main higher education sectors (table 11.03).

The proportion of new baccalauréat holders from the most advantaged social categories differed considerably from one sector to another. It was highest in CPGE and the healthcare fields of education, where the proportion of children of senior managers or teachers stood at 48.8% and 38.7% respectively. By contrast, the short technological courses, IUT and especially STS, received more children of manual workers and office workers. They represented 32.1% of new enrolments in IUT and 39.6% in STS, compared with 17.5% in CPGE.

Aline Pauron